A community-wide panel discussion on the tuition crisis will be held in YIW at 8:30 pm, featuring Chavie Kahn, director of day school initiatives at UJA Federation; Asher Mansdorf, vice president of Lawrence Board of Education, and Litwack.

OU’s Teach Advocacy Network is dedicated to securing government funding to ensure that Jewish schools are safe and fairly funded. It also fights for equitable government funding, tax credit scholarships and education savings accounts to make a difference for day school students, families and schools.

Litwack said that the tuition crisis has been getting worse over the last 15 to 20 years.

“The costs of education have been going up rapidly,” Litwack said. “The cost of tuition is pricing some people out of providing their children with a Jewish education. Some families are being forced to rethink vacations, cost of living and, in some cases, how many children they have. It’s affecting people’s way of life.”

“For the long-term sustainability of Jewish life, you need Jewish education. We need to make that as affordable and attainable as possible,” Litwack continued. “There’s an understanding that this is a crisis. But a crisis requires serious investment of time and involvement over the same period.

“For those who want to make a meaningful difference, there’s a lot that they can learn at the program. For those who want to move beyond discussion around dining room tables, this is going to be an excellent forum to do so. Jewish education should be a communal responsibility.”

Teach Advocacy operates in New York, New Jersey, Florida, Pennsylvania, Maryland and California, covering 186,000 children. Thanks to its efforts, 450 day schools and yeshivas receive government funding.

To learn more about Teach Advocacy or how to get involved in solving the tuition crisis, visit teachadvocacy.org.